Illinois General Assembly - Full Text of HB4144

LRB104 14872 BDA 28016 b

104TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2025 and 2026
HB4144

Introduced 10/15/2025, by Rep. Mary Beth Canty

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:

20 ILCS 3305/4	from Ch. 127, par. 1054
20 ILCS 3305/24 new

Amends the Illinois Emergency Management Agency Act. Provides that the Illinois Emergency Management Agency and Office of Homeland Security (IEMA-OHS) shall, in consultation with the Mutual Aid Box Alarm System (MABAS) and the Illinois Law Enforcement Alarm System (ILEAS), annually determine what funding is necessary for MABAS and ILEAS to sufficiently alleviate difficulties that emergency responders face in coordinating and providing personnel and equipment from participating agencies and units of local government when responding to all-hazard emergencies in this State and establish a formula for the distribution of that funding. Provides for a continuing appropriation of that funding, with reductions in the case of federal funding. Changes a definition. Effective immediately.

A BILL FOR

AN ACT concerning State government.

Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, represented in the General Assembly:

Section 5. The Illinois Emergency Management Agency Act is amended by changing Section 4 and by adding Section 24 as follows:

(20 ILCS 3305/4) (from Ch. 127, par. 1054)

Sec. 4. Definitions. As used in this Act, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise, the following words and terms have the meanings ascribed to them in this Section:

"Coordinator" means the staff assistant to the principal executive officer of a political subdivision with the duty of coordinating the emergency management programs of that political subdivision.

"Cyber incident" means an event occurring on or conducted through a computer network that actually or imminently jeopardizes the integrity, confidentiality, or availability of computers, information or communications systems or networks, physical or virtual infrastructure controlled by computers or information systems, or information resident thereon that affect or control infrastructure or communications networks utilized by the public. "Cyber incident" includes a vulnerability in information systems, system security procedures, internal controls, or implementations that could be exploited by a threat source that affect or control infrastructure or communications networks utilized by the public.

"Disaster" means an occurrence or threat of widespread or severe damage, injury or loss of life or property resulting from any natural, technological, or human cause, including but not limited to fire, flood, earthquake, wind, storm, hazardous materials spill or other water contamination requiring emergency action to avert danger or damage, epidemic, air contamination, blight, extended periods of severe and inclement weather, drought, infestation, critical shortages of essential fuels and energy, explosion, riot, hostile military or paramilitary action, public health emergencies, cyber incidents, or acts of domestic terrorism.

"Emergency Management" means the efforts of the State and the political subdivisions to develop, plan, analyze, conduct, provide, implement and maintain programs for disaster mitigation, preparedness, response and recovery.

"Emergency Services and Disaster Agency" means the agency by this name, by the name Emergency Management Agency, or by any other name that is established by ordinance within a political subdivision to coordinate the emergency management program within that political subdivision and with private organizations, other political subdivisions, the State and federal governments.

"Emergency Operations Plan" means the written plan of the State and political subdivisions describing the organization, mission, and functions of the government and supporting services for responding to and recovering from disasters and shall include plans that take into account the needs of those individuals with household pets and service animals following a major disaster or emergency.

"Emergency Services" means the coordination of functions by the State and its political subdivision, other than functions for which military forces are primarily responsible, as may be necessary or proper to prevent, minimize, repair, and alleviate injury and damage resulting from any natural or technological causes. These functions include, without limitation, fire fighting services, police services, emergency aviation services, medical and health services, HazMat and technical rescue teams, rescue, engineering, warning services, communications, radiological, chemical and other special weapons defense, evacuation of persons from stricken or threatened areas, emergency assigned functions of plant protection, temporary restoration of public utility services and other functions related to civilian protection, together with all other activities necessary or incidental to protecting life or property.

"Exercise" means a planned event realistically simulating a disaster, conducted for the purpose of evaluating the political subdivision's coordinated emergency management capabilities, including, but not limited to, testing the emergency operations plan.

"HazMat team" means a career or volunteer mobile support team that has been authorized by a unit of local government to respond to hazardous materials emergencies and that is primarily designed for emergency response to chemical or biological terrorism, radiological emergencies, hazardous material spills, releases, or fires, or other contamination events.

"Illinois Emergency Management Agency" or "Illinois Emergency Management Agency and Office of Homeland Security" or "IEMA-OHS" means the agency established by this Act within the executive branch of State Government responsible for coordination of the overall emergency management program of the State and with private organizations, political subdivisions, and the federal government. "Illinois Emergency Management Agency" also includes means the State Emergency Response Commission responsible for the implementation of Title III of the Superfund Amendments and Reauthorization Act of 1986.

"Mobile Support Team" means a group of individuals designated as a team by the Governor or Director to train prior to and to be dispatched, if the Governor or the Director so determines, to aid and reinforce the State and political subdivision emergency management efforts in response to a disaster.

"Municipality" means any city, village, and incorporated town.

"Political Subdivision" means any county, city, village, or incorporated town or township if the township is in a county having a population of more than 2,000,000.

"Principal Executive Officer" means chair of the county board, supervisor of a township if the township is in a county having a population of more than 2,000,000, mayor of a city or incorporated town, president of a village, or in their absence or disability, the interim successor as established under Section 7 of the Emergency Interim Executive Succession Act.

"Public health emergency" means an occurrence or imminent threat of an illness or health condition that:

(a) is believed to be caused by any of the following:

(i) bioterrorism;

(ii) the appearance of a novel or previously controlled or eradicated infectious agent or biological toxin;

(iii) a natural disaster;

(iv) a chemical attack or accidental release; or

(v) a nuclear attack or accident; and

(b) poses a high probability of any of the following harms:

(i) a large number of deaths in the affected population;

(ii) a large number of serious or long-term disabilities in the affected population; or

(iii) widespread exposure to an infectious or toxic agent that poses a significant risk of substantial future harm to a large number of people in the affected population.

"Statewide mutual aid organization" means an entity with local government members throughout the State that facilitates temporary assistance through its members in a particular public safety discipline, such as police, fire or emergency management, when an occurrence exceeds a member jurisdiction's capabilities.

"Technical rescue team" means a career or volunteer mobile support team that has been authorized by a unit of local government to respond to building collapse, high angle rescue, and other specialized rescue emergencies and that is primarily designated for emergency response to technical rescue events.

(Source: P.A. 102-485, eff. 8-20-21.)

(20 ILCS 3305/24 new)

Sec. 24. MABAS and ILEAS funding.

(a) Beginning July 1, 2026, the Illinois Emergency Management Agency and Office of Homeland Security (IEMA-OHS) shall, in consultation with the Mutual Aid Box Alarm System (MABAS) and the Illinois Law Enforcement Alarm System (ILEAS), annually determine what funding is necessary for MABAS and ILEAS to sufficiently alleviate difficulties that emergency responders face in coordinating and providing personnel and equipment from participating agencies and units of local government when responding to all-hazard emergencies in this State.

(b) By January 1, 2027, IEMA-OHS shall, in consultation with MABAS and ILEAS, establish a formula for the distribution of the funding under subsection (a) of this Section.

(c) Beginning July 1, 2028, if for any reason the aggregate appropriations made available to IEMA-OHS to make grants to MABAS and ILEAS to enhance statewide emergency preparedness and response are insufficient to meet the levels required by this Section, this Section shall constitute a continuing appropriation of all amounts necessary for these purposes, except that this amount may be reduced by the amount the State of Illinois receives in federal grants that IEMA-OHS designates to be distributed to MABAS and ILEAS. The General Assembly may appropriate lesser amounts by law.

Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon becoming law.